


Crossing

by neverwinter (KingPreussen)



Series: it takes a village [4]
Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Family Dynamics, Fluff, Gen, Mental Health Issues, No Spoilers, Sibling Bonding, reference to childhood trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-18
Updated: 2017-04-18
Packaged: 2018-10-20 16:07:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10666140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KingPreussen/pseuds/neverwinter
Summary: Taako finally blinked his eyes open, staring up at the much-dimmed constellations of sticky stars on his adopted son's ceiling. Angus shifted against his side, making a displeased noise, and Taako mumbled, "притихни," which made him sigh and obediently quiet down.---A late-night drive to Aunt Lup's.





	Crossing

**Author's Note:**

> remember when i said i wasnt going to write about lup? i have seen the light and i love my daughter so much
> 
> if people like this i will write some more!
> 
> some important info:  
> \- ive lowered angus' age to make some things work. hes about 7-8 but still a little genius boy  
> \- although taako officially adopted angus, theres more of a "it takes a village" dynamic going on with their family  
> \- i study russian and id like to start using russian as the equivalent of elvish. притихни is the gentle command form of "quiet down"
> 
> [title from crossing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOJsGVDLRFI), again just a song i like

A police car passed Taako's apartment in the middle of the night and the combination of the siren and flashing lights woke him just enough to frown in annoyance without opening his eyes.

He was technically in meditation and not sleeping, so it should have been easier to ignore interruptions like that, but he was so exhausted from the day before that the one cop car was like a klaxon directly into his brain. It took a minute of slow breathing in the re-established silence for the rest of his brain to wake up. One arm was definitely asleep, the same side burning hot, his opposite foot out of the bed and dangling toward the floor. So, in Angus' bed.

Taako finally blinked his eyes open, staring up at the much-dimmed constellations of sticky stars on his adopted son's ceiling. Angus shifted against his side, making a displeased noise, and Taako mumbled, "притихни," which made him sigh and obediently quiet down. A few more cars passed, and the numb arm started to go worryingly cold, and Taako gave up trying to meditate again. Instead he very gently eased Angus off of himself and sat up.

Like his bed, the kid's entire room was small. Which was okay, for now, because _he_ was small, but Humans grew much faster than Elves and Taako was worried about moving. They lived so near to their friends now and he had to grudgingly admit that he _liked_ having a community (at least, to Lup and Angus. Everyone else could keep thinking he was a stuck up bitch for all he cared). There was no way he would move more than a few blocks away from their little private circle of friends.

It wasn't the richest neighborhood, certainly not as rich as the home Angus spent his babiest years in, but they had A/C and hot water and the lights never shut off so Taako considered it a Major Upgrade from his last digs. Of course back then he didn't have a kid. There was no way he would let Angus go hungry or wake up cold like he and Lup used to.

Taako's cellphone began to ring from the other room and he slowly stood up, rubbing at the buzzing feeling that was slowly taking over his arm. Before he went for his phone he leaned across the bed to kiss Angus on his forehead and tuck him in--Angus smiled in his sleep and Taako felt kind of like his heart was going to burst--and then shut the door behind him when he left.

It was pitch black in the hallway but because of his natural night vision he could only tell from the greyness of their normally cheerful olive walls. The pictures lining the hallway were also grey, some of them photographs, some of them drawn by Angus himself. Taako's most prized drawing (a painstakingly detailed piece of work Angus did of their whole huge family) was hanging on his bedroom door, and he took a second to study it before he pushed the door open to get into his room.

His phone was on his bed where he threw it after work, face down; he flipped it over curiously, peering through the sudden brightness at the name and tiny photo of the caller. Then he swiped right on the call and brought the phone to his ear, a grin spreading over his face.

"You know what the fuck time it is?" he faux-sniped, and a voice identical to his but higher in pitch laughed across the line.

"Hi, Taako," Lup replied softly. "Sorry to wake you."

Taako tucked a loose curl from his bun around his ear and his grin softened. "You didn't, bubeleh. What's up?" Lup hesitated, which wasn't normal for her (where Taako was more talk and less action, Lup was a huge amount of talk and _even more_ action). Taako had to prevent the urge to scoop Angus up and put him in the car for a little drive to Auntie's house. "Nothing fucked up, right? You've got all ten fingers and toes?"

"Yeah, of course." She laughed again but it sounded a little sad. "Just… having one of those nights, you know?"

Oh, did Taako know. And the urge won. "Me 'n' little man are gonna pick up some Mickey D's and head over, alright?" he said, having already made the decision without her input. They tended to think the other knew best while they were in their Moods, anyway.

Lup made a noise of confirmation and Taako sent a kiss down the line before hanging up. He quickly changed into sweatpants and a tee-shirt instead of his pajamas, fixing his hair into something resembling a braid that he re-bunned on top of his head. Then he shoved his wallet, keys, and phone into his pockets and went to get his son.

Angus was still deep asleep when Taako got to his bedroom, but he was so small and slight Taako didn't need to wake him anyway. He picked Angus up as gently as he could and reached for his logic puzzle book as well, just in case he woke up while they were at Lup's house; he was good at occupying himself with whatever he could get his hands on but if Taako had the chance to bring him something fun he always would. The maneuvering Taako had to perform to lock up their apartment with a child in his arms did wake him, however, and he made a quiet, confused sound into the crook of Taako's neck.

"Daddy?" Angus mumbled. He never called Taako that unless he was dead tired.

Taako gently ran his fingers through the loose curls at the back of Angus' head and walked quickly toward the parking garage. He could definitely hold his own against any fuckhead that would think it was a good idea to attack them in the dimly-lit street, but he didn't want to have to kill someone in front of Angus. "I've got you, pumpkin," Taako reassured Angus under his breath. "Go back to sleep."

Angus was too curious to actually follow that request. He leaned up a little so he could look around him, but it was still too dark for his Human eyes to see much of anything. "Where are we going?"

"Auntie Lup's. Well, McDonalds first, and then Lup's."

"Is something wrong? Does she need help?"

Lup told Angus some abridged versions of her mental health issues from what Taako knew, but not everything that went into them, so Taako just replied, "I think she needs a big hug from her favorite nephew and she'll feel better. Also some hashbrowns." Angus stuck his tongue out and Taako snorted, hitching him better on his hip so he could press the button to unlock their little Civic. "I know you hate them, baby, I'll get you something different."

Angus was very helpful while Taako strapped him into the back seat (he was just barely tall enough not to need a carseat anymore, but that didn't keep Taako from worrying) and was knocked out again pretty much as soon as the car started moving. Lup only lived ten minutes away from them but Taako had to go in the opposite direction for the nearest drivethrough, so the entire event took twice as long.

Taako had his own key to Lup's apartment, of course, but now he was juggling a kid and a bag of hot food, so he used Mage Hand to knock instead of fumbling for it. 

His sister opened the door only a few seconds later. "Oh, darling," Taako muttered, leaning forward to trade kisses on the cheek with her without squishing Angus too much between them. She managed a smile for him but her eyes were red-rimmed, traces of unwashed eyeliner smudged underneath. "Here, hold boy wonder for a second."

"Thanks for coming over, Taako," Lup said while Angus sleepily turned to cling to her instead of his dad. "I don't know what happened, I was fine before, but I just started feeling like shit."

Taako made his way into her living room, which was about as small as his and Angus' but with a big, gaudy decorative IKEA rug in the middle. He set the food and Angus' book on the metal coffee table and then grabbed the remote and turned the television on, plopping down onto the narrow couch and patting the seat beside him. "Come on, talking time."

"Fuck talking time." Lup sat with more care than her brother, and Angus automatically gravitated back to Taako in his sleep. When he was comfortable across both of their laps Taako threw an arm around Lup's shoulder and pulled her in for a kiss to the temple and a gentle noogie.

"We gotta do talking time, babydoll." She grumbled in annoyance while resting her head against his shoulder. "Talking time or no hashbrowns," he warned.

Lup huffed. "You're a fucking demon, dude."

"I know," Taako said with a wide grin while turning the volume down on the television. It was always easier for them to have serious conversations when they didn't have to look at one another, and he was genuinely worried about his twin. Using Taako as an identical sounding board helped Lup work out whatever she was feeling in the moment and she felt a lot better afterward, or so she said, even while she hated the process.

"Tell you what," Taako continued magnanimously. He twirled a curl of Lup's deep black hair around his finger and she glared at him but didn't pull away. "I'll give you half now, and half after talking time."

Lup reached for the bag without a second thought. "Fuck you," she said through a mouthful of potato, and Taako had to stifle his laughter. He certainly wasn't annoyed to be awake anymore.


End file.
